Elevators Are Back in Service at One of the Upper West Side’s Busiest Subway Stations

Riders who need an elevator to reach the platforms at one of the Upper West Side’s busiest subway stations have some good news, with two brand new elevators now open and running.

Advertisement

The new elevators are at the 72nd Street 1/2/3 station, where one runs from the street to the downtown platform and the other connects the street to the uptown platform, per an MTA press release. The station serves more than 25,000 riders every weekday.

The MTA said the elevators opened on budget. A construction bulletin for the project said the old elevators would close on or about Aug. 25, 2025, and stay out of service through the first quarter of 2026.

“72 St is a major transit hub for thousands of daily riders who can now count on more reliable elevator service for years to come,” said MTA Construction and Development President Jamie Torres-Springer.

MTA Chief Accessibility Officer Quemuel Arroyo noted that the station is more than 100 years old. “By proactively replacing aging equipment across the system, the MTA can improve reliability, minimize disruptions and help prevent unplanned elevator outages,” he said.

The work included a full replacement of the elevator cabs and the equipment in each cab, shaft and pit, along with new glass and canopies on the elevator head houses at street level. Crews also replaced the machine room, electrical and mechanical equipment, and upgraded the remote monitoring, fire alarm, intercom and camera systems, which the MTA says will help crews respond more quickly if an elevator goes out of service.

Advertisement

The MTA has now completed 24 elevator replacements so far in 2026, already the second-highest total for a single year in the agency’s history. There are now 163 fully accessible stations across the system, 48 of which have been completed since 2020, and the MTA’s 2025-2029 Capital Plan includes nearly $7.1 billion for station accessibility, with plans to make 60 more stations accessible and modernize another 48 subway elevators.

Have a news tip? Send it to us here!